Tom Sherak re-elected AMPAS president

Tom Sherak, president of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, speaks at a news conference during preparations for the 83rd Academy Awards in Hollywood, California February 25, 2011. Photo: Reuters

Tom Sherak has been re-elected to a third term as president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, AMPAS announced on Tuesday night following a meeting of its Board of Governors.

Sherak, a distribution and production executive who currently serves as a consultant for Skydance Productions and Relativity Media, has represented the executive branch of the Academy on the board for nine years.

His election certainly didn't come as a surprise: It is virtually unheard-of for a sitting Academy president not to be re-elected, if the president chooses to run. Presidents can serve a maximum of four consecutive one-year terms, making this Sherak's second-to-last year in office.

Robinson, Koch and Bening have served as Academy officers for the past year. Sid Ganis, who had been serving as first vice-president, had to leave the board because of AMPAS term limits. Rehme, a past Academy president, replaces James L. Brooks in one of the two vice-president slots.

In his two years as Academy president, Sherak has presided over an eventful time during which the Academy went to 10 Best Picture nominations for the first time in decades, and then adjusted to its current variable number of nominations; tried to bring a younger audience to the Oscar telecast, with mixed results; and reorganized its executive structure with the retirement of longtime executive director Bruce Davis and the hiring of new CEO Dawn Hudson.

In addition to the election of officers, other news expected to come out of Tuesday's board meeting includes the selection of this year's Governors Award recipients and the institution of new campaign regulations that will reportedly place heightened restrictions on Oscar-season parties.